Previously, Bai Manshan hired villagers to deliver potatoes for 100 coins a day, but that didn't require them to provide donkeys. Now, it would also cost 100 coins per person and donkey to go out. Shui Qing was unsure of the market price and had no idea what to expect.

However, Fan Jin said that Bai Manshan's price was indeed very high. In normal years, a man pulling a cart would earn no more than forty coins a day, and most would earn around thirty-two coins. It was far to Yuhang, and while his own medicine shop could make money by helping out the villagers, there was no need to set the price too high.

Everything has a market price. The village men provided their own donkeys; one hundred coins should be enough, right? Let's see what the village elders think.

Grandpa Wang said, "Sure! The fields have been planted, the potatoes harvested, the land plowed, and we don't need a donkey, so why not?"

Old Man Wu chimed in, "Last time, Master Bai delivered potatoes for a hundred coins a day, but that involved hauling potatoes, which was exhausting. Now, with a donkey, you can ride it yourself, without having to haul goods or walk. Isn't that more comfortable? I'd even take the job for a hundred coins a day!"

It's just that the world is not peaceful, otherwise there would be no need for so many people to go out and deliver goods.

One hundred coins a day for one person, if you hire thirty or forty men at once, that's three or four taels a day. Good heavens, how many taels of silver will be spent on one trip!

The old village chief looked at Shui Qing and asked with concern, "Will this delivery trip be profitable?"

Shuiqing was surprised that they had no objections at all, and even cared that her costs were too high and she wasn't making money.

He smiled and said, "The profits are good. Renjitang had to limit the quantity of goods, so they weren't all sold out. In addition to the goods stored in the past two months, the rest will be processed and transported out before departure. Then we can continue processing them after the autumn harvest of medicinal herbs this year."

"There's an extra wage, but less monthly pay later, so the difference isn't huge. Besides, if the purchase price from Yuhang is even slightly higher, the wages will be fully recouped! Don't worry, old village chief."

Fortunately, Polygonum multiflorum is a valuable medicinal herb, and yam is not bad either. If it were replaced with kudzu root, which is both heavy and cheap, it would not be suitable to be transported to Yuhang to sell over a long distance—the transportation cost would not even be recouped.

However, if it's just kudzu root, we simply can't afford the labor cost.

The old village chief made the decision: "Alright, then we'll all talk to our own families and the people around us later, tell them to hurry up and harvest potatoes and plow the fields, and then each of us will select our own family members so that we can go out in mid-February."

The steamed buns were delivered, and the delivery arrangements were unexpectedly finalized ahead of schedule, which made Shuiqing feel much more relaxed.

In the evening, after Fan Jin and his family returned from planting medicinal herbs on the farthest mountain, Shui Qing recounted in detail their delivery trip at the dinner table.

Hu Wenhua was alright, but Fan He jumped up, extremely excited, and asked incredulously, "Mother, you really want me to go?"

Hu's mother asked worriedly, "Isn't Dahe a little too young?"

Fan He hurriedly promised, "Grandmother, I want to go out and see the world. I promise I'll listen to my uncle the whole way and won't do anything dangerous!"

She further emphasized her own value: "Grandma, don't underestimate me just because I'm young. Uncle Bai said I'm suited for business, and my mother has taught me a lot. Maybe I'll come in handy when we go to Yuhang."

That's Yuhang! It's the Jiangnan region from the books. When he got there, it was exactly March. He heard that Jiangnan is incredibly beautiful in March. He wanted to go!

Fan Jin gently suggested, "Dahe's temperament is not suited to reading and writing. He can't sit still and only wants to run around. Since he's not going to take the imperial examination route, his current literacy and arithmetic skills are sufficient. It would be good for him to go out and see more of the world."

Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. After Dahe started doing business, there was indeed limited knowledge that could be learned from books. He still had to explore on his own.

Shuiqing wasn't too worried. There were plenty of servants in the neighborhood who were only teenagers and ran around with their masters. Besides, as Fan Jin said, he really wasn't cut out for studying. Dahe had been nagging her for a long time, so she thought, "Let him go if he wants to. If you don't let go, he'll never grow up." Maybe she was a heartless mother!

Ding Heli chuckled and said, “We were in chaos because of a flood last year. Although the Prince of Yan has rebelled, he is in Beidu and the new emperor is in Jinling, both of which are north of Yuhang.”

Furthermore, the Jiangnan region has always been a major area for tax collection and grain delivery, and the governors there are always the most capable; it won't cause trouble, and it's probably safer than our area.”

Mrs. Hu was relieved.